


You Found Me

by tbvwritings



Category: Red Velvet (K-pop Band)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-05-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:47:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24214669
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tbvwritings/pseuds/tbvwritings
Relationships: Bae Joohyun | Irene/Park Sooyoung | Joy
Comments: 3
Kudos: 11





	You Found Me

As far back as Joy can remember, the world has been obsessed with the ritual of soulmate searching. The small patch of darkened skin in the shape of building blocks on her left wrist is a reminder every day that there’s someone out there she’s supposedly destined to fall in love with. However, the symbol will only show it’s true colors whenever you’re within five meters of said person and Joy’s has remained blackened since the day she first took notice of it. Many friends, family members, and passing strangers have casually bumped into their matching symbol, and yet, she’s had no luck herself.

Of course, there are ways to narrow down the search as technology has advanced over the years. Simply snapping a picture of the unique marking and uploading it to one of the thousands of forums dedicated solely to pairing the symbols together will send you a direct match if your soulmate has done the same thing. But, the world seems to enjoy playing cruel jokes on Joy as the few she has posted to have yet to gain any form of traction whatsoever.

Dating someone besides your soulmate is heavily frowned upon in society, meaning life for those unable to find theirs is a miserable road that for many has resulted in addiction, mental health deterioration, and ultimately premature death. People who have managed to survive without their soulmates are often a source of interest for those matched up. In a cruel, twisted joke, they’re paraded around on television being interviewed for not having the perfect life everyone else seemingly does. Because if life wasn’t already difficult enough without someone to fall in love with, why not treat them as outsiders in the world?

It is said that if you don’t meet the person sharing your soul mark before the age of thirty, you’re unlikely ever to. But that isn’t an issue quite yet for Joy, there are still plenty of years ahead to find the very person who has been alluding her for way too long now.

She is stuck in a monotonous cycle, working to pay off the same bills every month that seemingly become more expensive during the day, whilst at night she roams the streets of her hometown desperately seeking another lost soul who could be the one meant for her. Many would find the entire thing more and more disillusioned the longer they search. But not Joy. For giving up would be similar to accepting a death sentence, so every morning is met with a brave smile whilst every night is met with a hopeful one that tomorrow will finally be the day she can fulfill her destiny.

As the wind whistles through the street, a cold shudder settles itself across every bone in Irene’s body. Winter has always been the most difficult time of year but it seems this one is desperate to bring about a severe decline in her already poor health. A small piece of cardboard rests beneath her frozen limbs whilst a warm coat previously belonging to a cousin she has since lost contact with is all she has to cover herself up with.

Loss is easy to accept when it’s the only card you’ve been dealt with, yet losing her life is something Irene has never truly considered a possibility until recently. It was a quick downfall, her parents’ decision to date outside of their soulmate and birth children was met with hatred and she was considered a plight to humanity for being the spawn of two of the soulless. Her own marking is far more faded than anyone else’s due to her not being a full soul child making it much more difficult for anyone other than her to see. The lines have also faded with age and wishing to destroy it during her teen years. But it’s still there, a constant reminder that she’s something people fear or consider evil.

No one was willing to allow the soulless to live in their homes, thus, they adapted to lining the streets with their unwanted bodies out of sheer desperation someone one day would take pity on them. It has yet to happen and Irene has lost all hope for it ever to.

She can’t recall how long it has been since she decided to leave her family behind and venture off into the world on her own, but she knows that it was a mistake. At least with her family, there was a small amount of compassion and someone to take care of finding your next meal whenever you’re too weak to do it yourself. Life alone is bleak with no escape from your own dark thoughts.

Exhaustion quickly overtakes any and all instincts as Irene allows herself to enter the one place where she’s free to dream of a better life. A place where she isn’t homeless, struggling to stay alive and stuck with this stupid title of being soulless that doesn’t grant her the same luxuries as those who have met and fallen in love with their soulmate. Seconds before her eyes shut, Irene could have sworn she saw a little glow lighting up the building blocks on her wrist, however, her body is much too weak to remain conscious.

A purple block, green block, and finally yellow. Joy’s eyes remain trained to the various different colors for several seconds before her brain finally kickstarts that her soulmate must be close. Her eyes search the seemingly deserted street desperately for anyone lingering in the darkness. However, the only companion she has is the sub-zero temperature and a cup of hot soup she prepared before leaving home.

The wind picks up slightly as she continues walking aimlessly checking every single alleyway and house window for someone, anyone. Nestled down on a doorstep Joy finally spots what looks to be a body, curled up into a ball, and seemingly sleeping but what gets her attention is the not-so-bright soul mark matching her own on display on the wrist tucked under the person’s head as a pillow.

She kneels before the woman gently. Her skin is cold, pale but dirty, hair matted and stuck to her head like glue whilst her plump lips are dry, completely blue.

Joy desperately shakes the frozen stiff body, yelling for whoever this person is to wake up. Without noticing, tears have begun to fall down her cheeks and land on the girl beneath her forehead. Fluttering eyes land on Joy’s wrist as her soul mark radiates brightly and a small unsettling smile creeps across Irene’s face at the realization she wasn’t seeing things and that some unfortunate soul has been tethered to her this entire time.

The same eyes close shut once more and the smile fades. The girl who wanted nothing more in life than to find her soulmate achieved her dream. It just so happens that person is someone who represents everything bad about this system Joy had put all of her hopes into and can’t possibly be the person Joy wants her to be.

A breathless whisper is all Irene can manage before her body gives up and grants her freedom from the cold, dark world that has shunned her for years.

“You found me.”


End file.
